Former Bellmore-Merrick EMS president gets 2 to 6 years

Brad Reiter sentenced in $1.6 million fraud case

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The former president of the Bellmore-Merrick Emergency Medical Services is headed to prison for two to six years after he stole $1.6 million from the volunteer unit, according to Nassau County District Attorney Madeline Singas.

Brad Reiter, 50, of Jackson, N.J., was charged with the theft last Sept. 29. He pleaded guilty before Acting Nassau County Supreme Court Justice Jerald Carter in April. According to authorities, he stole from the EMS to pay his bills.

Reiter was charged with first-degree grand larceny. He reached a restitution agreement with the Bellmore-Merrick EMS. Still, Carter gave him prison time.

“EMS volunteers selflessly provide life-saving medical care to Nassau residents every day,” Singas said. “As a leader of the organization, this defendant knew the importance of these critical resources to the safety and health of our communities, but outrageously, he stole more than $1.6 million from EMS coffers and selfishly used the money for personal expenses. This sentence should send a strong message that this conduct will not be tolerated.”

Michael Verbsky, the Bellmore-Merrick EMS vice president, said unit members were satisfied by the outcome. “The board, officers and members of Bellmore-Merrick EMS are grateful to District Attorney Singas and Assistant District Attorney Peter Mancuso for taking such swift and decisive action in prosecuting Mr. Reiter. Our organization was formed to serve the public in its worst times of need, not to be the honey pot for one greedy man.”

Reiter stole from the EMS between March 2008 and March 2015, when he was the unit’s president and treasurer, with full access to the books.

New leaders were appointed in January 2015. When they scrutinized the books to prepare an annual report, they discovered the theft and turned over critical evidence to Singas’s office.

Reiter reported that the EMS had received significantly less in insurance payments than it actually did, Singas said. Reiter wrote EMS checks to himself for no reason other than to steal.

He spent the money on credit card and insurance bills, law and security services, and payments to himself.